Sunday Cooking: Single & Fabulous

People tend to eat first with their eyes, then with their mouths, so I always try to make food look as good as it tastes when I have friends over for dinner. But I also do the same for myself, even though I'm often dining alone at home and there's no one around to see my meals.

Today I made a crab salad and avocado "tower" with cucumber slices. I made the salad with crab meat, diced onions, bell peppers and celery, lemon zest, a touch of mayo and Dijon mustard. I then pressed it into a tuna can that I had saved and removed the top and bottom lids from. I then put mashed avocado on top of the salad, and refrigerated it for an hour. Sliced cucumbers topped the tower for added crunchy texture.

The result was a cool and flavorful summer lunch that tasted as good as it looked. Eating alone can be a fabulous experience, if you put a little bit of effort into it!

Healthy Taco Salad

I've been consuming way too much bready and carby things lately, so I'm sticking to mostly meat and veg for the next couple of weeks. I find that I feel lighter and just better overall when I eat little or no bread, but I'm realistic. Bread is and will always be an integral part of my life, but I can cut back here and there.

The key is finding non-carby foods that elicit the same mouthwatering cravings that bready food does. One of my favorites is my low-carb (as in bread, not vegetables) Taco Salad. It's simple to make and absolutely delicious and it's a healthy meal I can get excited about. Saying no to bread is easy when you know this is waiting for you at home! Recipe after the pic :).

The sun setting on my delicious taco salad

Healthy Taco Salad

1 lb. ground lean turkey

1 red bell pepper

1 medium yellow onion

1.5 packets of taco seasoning

2/3 cup water

1 15oz. can of pinto beans

Salad greens (I prefer romaine as it stands up nicely to the hot meat/bean mixture)

1 avocado

Low-fat jalapeno cheese, or jalapeno flavored Veggie Slices

2 cups grape tomatoes

Cook turkey, onion and bell peppers in a large saute pan until the meat is mostly cooked and onions are translucent. Add in the 1 and 1/2 packets of taco seasoning, plus 2/3 cups of water and 1 can of pinto beans. Stir to incorporate all the seasoning, and let simmer, uncovered for 15 minutes.

For family style: Make the salad with greens, sliced avocado, cheese and tomatoes and put onto a platter. Top with the hot taco mixture. There's no need for dressing as the spices and juices from the taco mixture will dress the salad quite nicely. Serve immediately.

For single style: Make the salad with greens, sliced avocado, cheese and tomatoes and put into a large Ziploc bag. Put the taco mixture into a Tupperware. Create individual taco salads using a portion of the greens, and a portion of the taco mixture (heat taco mixture first). This recipe makes enough for me to make 4 meal-sized salads for the week.